February 24, 2026
Please use the comment section on this page to share insights from today’s reading OR your own personal Bible reading.
Reading along with us in Job & Hebrews? Here’s today’s reading:
Hebrews 12 (NIV)
1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, 2 fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith.……Continue Reading
Discipline, so unappreciated as a child and truly understood as a parent. When I was young and was punished by my parents I thought it mean and unfair. It is not until as an adult I really saw the love behind it. God, as our loving Father, uses discipline to keep us on the path, our decisions have consequences that teach us the right way. but discipline is only effective when we learn from it and do better. Ultimately Jesus took the worst punishment, the one owed to us, so we can be forgiven and we might “…be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe,”
As we see those who have come before us, who ran their race in faith, we are encouraged to run our race as well. We are to strip off not only the sin that so easily trips us up, but also other things that keep us from running swift and efficient, the time wasters and distractions that burn time and energy that would be best used for more useful, godly things. Yet no one will ever sacrifice more than Jesus, who looked to the greater purpose of His mission and what awaited Him in heaven to motivate Him to go through what He did. If He didn’t grow weary and lose heart when confronted by the world, why would we? And if Jesus’ example is not enough for us to make tough decisions to believe and overcome, we also need to remember that God disciples us when we continue in sin. It is not pleasant when that happens but very necessary to have something happen in flesh, spirit or circumstances that helps us recognize when our lives have gone off course. So we can be strong and make good decisions and have peaceful relationships with people and not be overcome by bitterness or impurity while we prioritize what is spiritual and not cater to the flesh. Because what we have in Jesus is way better in power, position and conviction than the Jews had in their relationship with God. They stood before a physical mountain. We stand in the presence of a heavenly kingdom and God speaks to us from there. Jesus’ blood makes us accepted, better than Abel’s sacrifice that made him more accepted than Cain. We are part of a kingdom that cannot be shaken and is defined and secured by the glory of God. So let us be thankful, and worship Him in awe and reference and allow His fire to purify us rather than consume us!
Psalm 79; Ezekiel 10-11; Hebrews 12
“Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as his children.” When we know that the Lord is disciplining us for something that is destructive, we must do the work that is required to put our feet on solid ground knowing that it will produce the peace that comes with righteousness. And we can find strength and perseverance in knowing that God is a good Father, he will give us what we need to overcome temptation, he will not turn his face from us. “The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and he helps me.” Psalm 28:6
Hebrews 12
Fix your eyes in Jesus. The pioneer and perfected of faith. This time of year I’m falling asleep in recliner by 9pm. Only problem is that I’m up at 3am. Where are my thoughts at that time. There not always pleasant as the concerns of life come at my mind. After about 5 minutes. I remember the sovereignty of my lord. And complete peace enters my heart and mind. Can I add one minute to my life by worrying. My father in heaven has taken care of me for 70 years. He’s not going to stop now. And then. What a verse 2. as it continues. For the joy set before him, he endured the cross, pushing away its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the front of God. the joy was us accepting his atonement!! Later in this chapter, what a great contrast between Mount Sinai and Mount Zion, that’s the Difference Jesus has made as the temple curtain was torn in two, as God welcomes us into his presence. We are citizens of a heavenly Jerusalem right now. This good news. Never ends!!!!
Hebrews 12 o
Hebrews 12